R&R Recap

I'm really alive!! Well, mostly. =P

Honestly, I can't believe it's already over. As I told Joe yesterday, I feel like he just got here. On our way to the airport at an ungodly hour  this morning, he said that he felt like the first week went sort of slow and the second week just sped by. I think I agree with that. I was enjoying having him here and just relaxing during the first week and then the second week came around...and I blinked. Now he's gone again. *sigh*

I know I updated you about a week ago while I was on my death bed getting over a cold. I'm still scratching my head about that one. It would totally figure that I'd get sick while he was here, though. That's how I roll. =P So, here's a quick recap of our adventures during week 2 of R&R:

On Monday, we went to the Polynesian Culture Center. My lovely friend Chantal had suggested it to me at some point, and Joe was really interested in going. Being the history nerd, I was more than happy to take him. ;-) We bought our tickets from ITR, and then when we got to the PCC we upgraded. Not because we were unhappy with what we got originally but because my hubby wanted to do all that we could possibly do. And we did. We left our house at about 11:30 a.m. and got back home around 10:00 p.m. Yeah.

Yes, I took the easy way out and made a collage. I took like 400+ pictures, so....deal with it. =P Lol!

Tuesday we had a beach/do-nothing day. We went to our favorite (and most of the island's...) beach - Waimea Bay!

It is way less crowded this time of year!! I am so loving that fact. Now, we were there at about 10 or 11 in the morning, so that had something to do with it as well. I was just utterly shocked that we were able to find parking here. Usually, you have to drive around the entirely-too-small parking lot 4 or 5 times before you can catch someone leaving and get their spot. When we arrived, there were a slew of spots available. Score one for getting to the beach early!

However, the waves and undertow this time of year are ridiculous. Great for surfing - not so much for swimming. It wasn't bad, but it was difficult. And when I was trying to get out of the water, I got sucked back in by the undertow, scraped my shin and got sand in places a woman should NEVER find sand. I think I've said enough. *sigh*

After the beach, we were starving! So, we hopped in the car and drove to the nearest Taco smell Bell, aka my hubby's go-to lunch spot. =P On the way there, we did some awesome in-the-car dancing and signing [and probably scared innocent bystanders].

Hehe, these just make me smile. =)

Wednesday, we drove to the other side of the island for a couples' massage. I have one word for you: heaven. After our massage, we spent the evening hanging out with our good friends Mr. and Mrs. C and their neighbors. =) {No pictures were taken this day because I was feelin' way too good. Lol!}

We deemed Thursday "date day." It was just going to be "date night" but we were out and about pretty much all day. We hit the PX, the pharmacy (My doctor was nice enough to call in my allergy meds AFTER my cold went away. Thanks for that.) and Ross all before lunch. I really just wanted to get a few things for traveling from the PX. Really. But, I came home with these too:

New pots and pans!!!! =D You see, my lovely Nana bought us stainless steel pots and pans as a wedding gift. While I thought they would be great, they soon proved to be nothing more than annoying. If you didn't know, stainless steel has a tendency to stick. To everything. Nothing can be cooked in them without using oil. Sometimes even that doesn't help. If they hadn't been all I had, I probably would have tossed them about a month after we got married. I spied these bad boys on sale at the PX and promptly drooled all over them. ;-) They were on sale for $89 and had an instant rebate coupon for $20. So, that makes them about $60. WalMart, Amazon and other retailers sell them for $115-$119. Can you say "steal?!" ;-) The only downside is that they're porcelain and not dishwasher safe.... But they are non-stick and amazing! Oh, and they're red. =) I heart them.

After lunch, we "lazed around" a bit and then headed to Waikiki for dinner and a stroll! We hadn't been to PF Chang's in, oh, forever so we decided to go. =) 

I am in love with this photo!!! I don't know what about it makes it awesome, but I am in love!!! =D Maybe it's just because we were having such a good time? Maybe it was the half glass of wine in front of me...? ;-)

After our delicious dinner, we walked around Waikiki. Can I just say that I am loving December in Hawaii?! I mean, it doesn't even feel like Christmas, but I love seeing all the decorations. For instance:

I love seeing palm trees decorated!! 

This was done by the Royal Hawaiian.

They also have a huge tree behind me. =)

While we were out, we went to the International Market where Joe got me a pearl. =) They have these little kiosks where you can "pick a pearl" and then get a charm to put it on. I was dying for one of these before he left, but we never got around to doing it. I was so glad he wanted to get one for me! The pearls themselves aren't expensive...it's the charms that they get you with. The one I really wanted was a cute little palm tree with "diamonds" (I don't think they were really real) on it was over $300. =( Instead, I got a cute little spiral. The pearl is silver, which means love. Hehe. I haven't taken a picture of it yet... Oops! But, I told him I would wear it every day (which translates to "most days" for me) until he gets back. =) 

Friday we did absolutely nothing. We didn't even leave the house. He was scheduled to leave on Saturday afternoon, so we wanted a day to just relax and enjoy each other's company. It was nice. =) Then Saturday around noon, I got a mysterious phone call. Turned out it was AA and his flight from Honolulu had been delayed due to who-knows-what. It would make him miss his connecting flight, so they wanted to reschedule... Long story short, he called the military peeps who book his flights and they gave us another night together! It was such a gift. =) Earlier that morning, I had honestly prayed that I wasn't ready for him to leave and I really wanted more time with him. Little did I know that God was really going to give me that one. Hehe.

Joe left this morning at 8 a.m. Sucky time for a flight to leave. If for no other reason than I am NOT a morning person. We got up at the butt crack of dawn and got ready in a rush. We drove to the airport in the pouring rain... People in Hawaii don't know how to drive in the pouring rain so it took us a bazillion years to get to the airport. 

We get to the airport and there are 9 bazillion people there. *sigh* I advised my husband to cut the 9 bazillion people off in line so he could check in and get to his gate. Got him checked in...went to security and remembered we forgot to ask if I could go with him to the gate... Back to AA check in we went. *sigh* By the time we did all of this, I'm pretty sure his flight was already boarding. =( We got to his gate, hugged, kissed and he boarded the plane.I was going to sit and wait for his plane to leave, but I was tired of getting stares from random strangers. Then I couldn't find our car in the parking garage. Epic, epic FAIL. 

It was a rough morning, but I managed to get through it ok. My momma called me and calmed me down a bit. My bestie texted me and advised me to do something, so I started packing. Then I cleaned up my post-see-ya-later face and got ready for church. I'm really glad I went to church this morning. The message was exactly what I needed. Of course. =) God is awesome like that. Being here alone after having Joe for 2 weeks is...strange. Part of me wants to kick and scream and cry until he comes back and the other - bigger - part of me almost feels like he was never here... Except for the dirty clothes on the floor and random things placed where they shouldn't be. =)

Oh, it just dawned on me that I said I was packing and you guys probably don't know what's going on! I'm going to visit my family over the holidays! Once Joe told me he was headed home, I asked if I could spend a million dollars (hey, it might as well be) to book a flight home. He, of course, said yes. So, tomorrow I'm headed to see the family! Even better, my in laws are paying to fly me from AR to NC so that I can see that side of the family too! =D I will have lots of good niece photos for you guys! Woohoo! I'm looking forward to seeing everyone, but I know it's going to make me miss Joe too. What I am NOT looking forward to is the 15 hours of flying I'll be doing starting tomorrow afternoon...

Aaaaand if you made it to the end of this super-long post...you deserve many kudos. =)